World War II

1939

In the summer, Prime
Minister Chamberlain told the House of Commons that the European situation had
greatly deteriorated. Germany and Poland
had each millions of soldiers facing each other. England and France had stated many times that
if Germany attacked Poland they would at once go to her aid.

On August 22, there was a
special cabinet meeting, Chamberlain having rushed back from Scotland.

On August 24, Parliament
met and Britain’s ambassador Sir Neville Henderson was instructed to inform
Hitler that we would attack at once if Poland was violated. Tremendous activity in London and across the
country, preparing for war. Stained glass removed from cathedrals, pictures
taken from galleries, troops standing ready, anti-aircraft guns all round
Britain manned day and night, also in Belfast.

My son Harry and his
family who were on a motoring tour of Scotland rushed back.

On August 25, Hitler sent
for ambassador Neville Henderson to put a special offer before the British
Parliament. Henderson flew with it to
London. Bank rate up from 2 to 6
percent. The pound fell from 4.60 Dollars
to 4.40 Dollars. Gold rose to 160
shillings per fine ounce.

People were astounded to
hear that negotiations for an alliance with Russia were off, and that during those negotiations, Stalin was secretly
negotiating with Germany, and a pact was concluded with Germany.

On August 27, Parliament
met again and Britons were ordered to leave Germany.

On August 29, Hitler’s
reply to a British message was received in London.

On August 30, a British
reply was sent to Hitler.

On August 31, the city of
Paris evacuated women and children.

On September 1, three
million women and children were evacuated from London. The stock exchange was closed.

On September 2, the
British Parliament met at 6.30, with members angry because war had not been
declared.

On September 3, war was declared
on Germany at 11 am. Later it was
announced that all cinemas, and other places of entertainment, were to be
closed and no crowds to assemble in streets.

The SS Athenia was torpedoed
off the Hebrides at 8 pm. Many passengers
killed by the explosion and many more drowned by the capsizing of boats. The German submarine, which fired shells at
the steamer, was seen by many passengers.
Several hundred passengers taken to Galway and Glasgow, including many
injured, all very scantily attired.
There were over 100 Americans on board.

On September 5, a small
Cunard steamer torpedoed. Great fighting
going on between Poland and Germany.

On September 8, we
attended meetings held by all trade associations in Belfast, and it was decided
that a charge of 5% should be added to all home invoices to help to cover the
War Risk Insurance. Foreign shipments
were included later.

As of September 16, we
were unable to get any quotations for yarns, or piece goods as the controlled prices
have not yet been fixed. My son Tom joined the RASC while Tom and Brian and
joined the Anti-Aircraft Royal Artillery.
The former actually joined about two months ago.

On September 16, and
aircraft carrier, the HMS Courageous, which had visited Portrush and been open
to the public in 1938, was torpedoed with loss of 600 lives including Bertie
Johnson, the son of our framer.

On September 27, we hear
details of Sir John Simon’s budget. New taxes are to raise £107m in the present
year so as to make the total revenue for 1939/40 £995m. Income Tax was raised from 5/6d in the pound
to 7/6d. Duty on assets rose by £10,000 to £50,000. Excess Profit Tax was 60%.

On November 30, my son
Britain went to Grangemouth in Scotland with his battery.

In December, my son
Harry went to Scotland with some of his men to see the Scottish batteries in
action and came back just before Christmas.

1940

On February 1, we start
to add two extra storeys to the new Brown Room. Jamie Morrison did the work at 10/6d per
perch.

On April 7, Germany invaded
Denmark and Norway. There were great
naval and air battles off Sweden and Denmark.

On April 11, Brian
arrived home from Scotland on short leave.

On April 16, Tom arrived
for one day only, from Scotland. He did
not get back again until August.

As of April 26, there was
a crisis in the linen trade. Buying from America absolutely stopped. All trade was stopped with Denmark, Norway,
Sweden and Holland. Home Trade supplies
to customers were cut down to 25% of the demand for the previous six months.

On May 10, Holland and Belgium
invaded. Iceland occupied by Great
Britain. Winston Churchill was made Prime Minister.

As of May 15-17, awful
battles, the fiercest in the world’s hstory, were raging in Holland, Belgium
and France.

By May 18, the Germans
were within 1o0 miles of Paris.

On May 23, the British
government took complete control of many
persons, their property, bank accounts, business, hours or work, and arrested
some suspected persons, including Sir Oswald Mosley.

On May 27, King Leopold
of Belgium made a separate peace without warning to the Allies, leaving part of
the front open.

In late May, there was
the great evacuation of Dunkirk, involving over 300,000 British and French troops. Thousand were, however,
lost.

On June 2, my son Tom was
made a captain.

On June 10, Italy
declared war on England and France. The
Germans were near Paris.

On June 13, my son Brian
came home for a few days after a severe illness.

In mid-June, all the road
signs were removed from highways about Northern Ireland.

On June 15, the Germans
entered Paris.

As of June 17, the French
had capitulated and deserted the British.

On July 7, it was clear
that all trade was practically dead. The
works was closed for a week.

In July, there were great air battles over England, Scotland and
Wales day and night. In Ulster the beaches
were all wired. Soldiers arrived in
Irish towns like Kilrea and Coleraine.

On July 21, steam cans
were added to the set under the old Brown Room. Clonmore House in Upperlands
was occupied by soldiers. All bridges over the Bann were mined.

On September 6, my son
Brian sailed with his Coleraine battery to an undisclosed destination.

On September 9, Buckingham
Palace was badly damaged. There was a heavy fall in linen prices, with 25’s
down from 27/6d to 23/6d. No orders
coming in. Half the place is idle.

In September, Mr
Williamson's trip to the USA was cancelled owing to the great dangers of the
Atlantic. Campbell College, Belfast,
moved to Northern Counties Hotel in Portrush. It is now most difficult to get a permit for
going to England or Scotland. Timber
almost impossible to get. The Manor
House, Kilrea, has been taken over by the soldiers.

In October, my son Harry
was made a captain. Tom had the same promotion three months earlier.

On October 26, the SS Empress
of Britain was sunk 160 miles off the Irish Coast by an aerial bomb.

On October 28, Italy
invaded Greece. Brain cabled in code that he had landed in Egypt. We got some large government orders for denims. 29” loom-width
12x8 ½ also for 28 ½ inches. Other
orders for Cotton Duck 14.6 ounces to the square yard, and a 27 -1/4 inch Linen
Dowlas 12 ¼ ounces per square yard, all made here.

On November 2, my son
Captain Harry Clark was here for the weekend.

From December 8, there
was a great Allied victory in Egypt with tens of thousands of prisoners taken.

On December 21, Captains
Tom and Harry Clark came back to Upperlands for a week’s leave. Both returned to Scotland a week later.

On December 29, there
were awful fires in London, The Guild Hall, seven famous churches, and
scores of other buildings were bombed and burned. London office bombed and
burned, Manchester office also seriously damaged.

On December 30, we had to
gave Cecil Gilmore three months formal notice to quit as US agent because
agent's commission had been prohibited by law.

1941

On January 2, the Germans
dropped bombs on Drogheda and Rathdrum.

On January 11, my nephew
Alexander Clark returned from visiting the awful destruction in Manchester and
London.

Daylight saving time continued
throughout the winter. It is now quite
dark at 9 am but clear to almost 6 pm. Coal
now costs 50 shillings per ton.

In late January, the
papers say that no passenger ship had reached New York from England since
November 16.

On January 23, there was
a big military exercise, simulating an attack on Upperlands, Maghera,
Draperstown and so on.

In April, my sons Tom and
Harry were made Majors.

On April 15, Belfast was
heavily bombed with huge numbers killed, also 12 in Derry. York Street almost
wiped out and thousands of houses levelled.

On May 5, Belfast was
again heavily bombed. The Rope Works, Thorntons, Lindsays, Pattersons, and
scores of other buildings were destroyed. The Midland Railway Hotel and Station
were burned out along with scores of railway carriages and wagons.

On May 25, HMS Hood was
sunk in the naval battle of Greenland by Germany’s most powerful ship, the
Bismarck, which was sunk by the Royal Navy soon after.

In May, there was a great
demand for shrunk ducks and canvas from Canada.

As of May 25, we werekeeping all the dams almost dry, as they
attracted the German aeroplanes, which dropped many flares around Upperlands
recently.

On June 29, Gilmore
cabled resigning the American agency and we appointed JG Robinson.

On July 11, my son Brian,
who had been appointed a staff captain in Cairo, was very seriously ill with rheumatic
fever.

A large number of
Americans landed in Derry and Larne, making naval bases.

As of July, both linens
and cottons were almost impossible to obtain. But my nephew George Clark was
doing a large trade in household goods in the USA.

As of August, we were only
allowed to supply 8% of the 1939 Home Trade requirements. It now takes letters 4-5 weeks to reach Canada
or the USA. There is, however, a regular
air mail via Lisbon.

In September, James Stewart,
head loft-man at the Jubilee, died. He had been with us for 52 years.

On December 7, Japan
attackedPearl Harbour, and over 2,000
Americans were killed. America declared
war on Germany and Italy as well as Japan.

1942

In January, my son Captain
Brian Clark arrived in Glasgow, having travelled via the Cape, Trinidad and
Halifax, Nova Scotia.

On January 2, the first
US troops landed in Ulster.

Also in January, we got a
very large Government order for dyeing and proofing several thousand webs, 200
to be delivered weekly. 5 ½ per yard paid for our work. The government supplied the goods.

On February 6, my son
Brian left forWoolwich after only
being two weeks at home.

On February 15, Singapore
fell, the greatest disaster in British military history.

On March 2, the first US
troops arrived in Kilrea.

On March 8, Rangoon fell.
The war news looked very serious.

On March 23 many hands
left us without warning to work at the Toome aerodrome owing to the great demand
for workers in aerodromes, quarries and sand-pits. We advanced Green wages from
48/6d to 52/- and farm labourers to 48/3d.

On May 6, the British
took Madagascar. There was a great US naval victory in the Solomon Islands,
with many ships sunk.

On June 27, Mr Churchill
returned by air from a week’s visit to the USA.

Also in June, we received
large government orders – over 4,000 webs - for dyeing and proofing as tent
ducks.

On July 2, the British
were driven back to within sixty miles of Alexandria.

On July 10, we closed the
whole place for ten days.

On July 20, American
troops arrived in Maghera. We heard that
Rostov had fallen.

On August 19, there was a
British raid on Dieppe which sounded at first like a full invasion.

Also in August, General
Alexander took over command in Egypt from General Auchinleck.

On September 8, Bob
Johnston, who had been our frame man for many years, died.

In September, there were
huge numbers of American troops all over Ulster. There was a big camp near
Moneymore, and another near Tobermore.

In October, we began
making 303 bullet sleeves in part of the weaving factory. We also got large
government orders for cotton overalls, mostly dyed sulphur black.

Linens were unobtainable. It was now impossible to get any supplies of
goods like 7x6, 8x6, 10x7, 11x8 etc., or good for hollands and buckrams. We were able to obtain some heavy goods such
as 5½ x 5 14/16, 6x6 20/20, 6x6 16/16, which our customers were glad to get
finished in shrunk ducks instead of the better numbers.

In October, my son Major
Harry Clark was transferred from England to Londonderry with his battery. My
great-nephew Aubrey Clark began serving his apprenticeship.

On October 4, our works
at Mullamore was taken over the government for bombing practice.

On November 2, we hear of
a great British victory in Egypt, with Rommel driven back many miles and 20,000
Axis prisoners taken.

On November 7 we hear
that the Americans, British and Canadians have landed in Algiers, Oran and many
other places in Africa. About 800 ships were used in this expedition, the
largest in the world’s history.

On November 16, the
chimney at our Mullamore works was demolished by the military.

As of November, some
75,000 Axis prisoners had been taken in Egypt. Church bells rang out for the
first time since 1939. Back in
Upperlands, we bought a Dundee Mangle from Carter in Dundee for £1,350.

In November, we hear of
wonderful Russian victories.

1943

On January 25, my grandson
Billy Clark entered the business. But after serving a few months he joined the
Irish Guards.

As of February, we were
turning out large quantities of incendiary bullets in a section of the weaving
factory. By March 1944, we were turning out 70,000 a
week. We were paid for all our work £5
per 1,000 and had to supply all plant ourselves.

In May, Bizerta in Tunis
was captured, with 300,000 Axis prisoners taken.

On September 3, the
Allies landed in Italy at 4 am. We now have only four beetling engines going at
each of the following places: the Jubilee, Lower House, Road Engines and
Moneycarrie.

On December 9, Miss M
Carmichael died. She had been 27 years
in our Belfast office and her loss was irreparable.

1944

As of January, Heysham
Steamers now only running three nights weekly, Liverpool boats once weekly. All towns in Ulster were full of Americans and
we often entertained them here.

In February, the Mullamore
aerodrome was fully working. Getting
goods to Canada became almost impossible.
We could not get any linens, cottons or unions to Canadian customers and
they were running very short.

My grandson Wallace Clark
started to serve time in the factory. He later joined the navy.

In October, we bought the
dwelling house and garden in Kilrea previously owned by our cousins Misses
Tillie and Jane Clark for £1,400.

Also in October, we got orders
for 3,500 webs of cotton canvas and 3,00 webs of drills.

In the same month, Mr
Bruce, manager of LM & S railway and several other directors, came here by special
train. We had lunch with them and they saw over our works.

On December 15, my grandson Roddie was lost at sea when the ship on which he was serving as a sub-lieutenant was torpedoed off Cape Wrath.

1945

On January 9, my grandson
Wallace went to join HMS Royal Arthur Norfolk.

On January 28, there was
a great freeze, with 25 degrees of frost, with scores of burst pipes and lots
of shrubs killed. Snow was a foot deep everywhere.

On January 28, Dan Tohill
died. He was our oldest hand, age 76,
and son of John Tohill, who carted all our goods to and from Castledawson until
1880.

On March 23, General
Montgomery crossed the Rhine. Our home trade got an allocation for 7,000 webs of
24-3/4 6x5 ½ 20/20. A new concrete weir was put in at Moneycarrie.

The government paid us
only £2,950 for the use of Mullamore for two years and the destruction of 21 workers’ houses. This would not re-build 3 houses.

In April, a new coal
siding was put in.

On May 8, the second
world war ended in Europe.

On May 27, James Gilmore
died – our great business friend in the USA for many years.